


A Leap Of Faith

by Ladytalon



Series: The Doctors Light [14]
Category: DCU (Comics)
Genre: Angst, Confessions, F/M, Fear
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-27
Updated: 2015-04-27
Packaged: 2018-03-26 01:30:11
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,144
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3832099
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ladytalon/pseuds/Ladytalon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When you’re notorious for being an ice queen, it’s difficult to open up and let the one you love know how you feel….Kimiyo’s been feeling different lately, and the secret is much harder to keep than she’d thought.  Arthur receives a late night phone call, and Bruce Wayne gets trapped down a well. Sort of. <b>EARTH-14</b></p>
            </blockquote>





	A Leap Of Faith

  
  
Contentment is vastly underrated when it is a commodity that can be found everywhere if one simply _looks_ hard enough... but there are times like these, when it is as evident as the feel of fingers trailing down a sweat-slick spine in the aftermath of mutually pleasurable exertion.

Kimiyo burrows her head into the pillow, shifting so that Arthur's hand moves to her hip. She can feel that he's still hard, pressed against her ass - when she wiggles experimentally, she can feel his cock twitch. "Really?" 

"Hmm," is all Arthur replies. The bass rumble of his voice reverberates through his chest to her back and she closes her eyes while he murmurs things that he wouldn't be caught dead admitting at any other time. The mere sound of it stokes her body's dimming glow, and Kimiyo rolls over to hook a leg over his hip. "Really," he laughs.

"Need a minute, old man?" she teases, making his smile widen. He has a beautiful smile when it's genuine, like this one is... not mocking, though his usual smirk is something she finds impossibly sexy as well. Not that she'd ever tell him. This smile, however, isn't one he'll show anyone but her - it's hers alone, and to be treasured because of it. Kimiyo reaches up to run the pads of her fingertips over his bottom lip and then leans forward to kiss the corners of Arthur's mouth while her hand cups his jaw, as if he might escape if she doesn't hold him there. 

He remains obediently motionless as Kimiyo scatters kisses across his face, trying to still the sudden panicked fluttering in her chest. It makes absolutely no sense to her, but lately she's entered a phase where all she wants to do is touch him, chapping his lips with her kisses and feeling his strong body pressed against her. When he leaves, a whisper in her head tells her to call after him. When he's there, he's never close enough. Kimiyo feels like her self-control is slowly being eroded by this bizarre need that she has no time to indulge in... she has responsibilities that come first, that have _always_ come first, and these newfound urges are so strong that she's almost frightened by them. She never felt this way when she was with Izumi - she had felt comfortable with him and marriage seemed like the logical next step, which had ultimately proved disastrous.

 _This_ , now... Kimiyo runs her tongue over the pulse point in Arthur's throat, feeling the quickened throb of his desire for her. _This_ has felt disastrous from the very beginning, and all she wants is more of it. Arthur rolls over onto his back, taking her with him so that she's sprawled atop his chest. Kimiyo sighs at the feel of his fingers combing through her hair, gathering it into a ponytail that he holds in his fist to direct her mouth back over his. The feeling of him firmly gripping her hair makes her glow intensify, thinking of how he'll hold her like that when she's sucking his cock, or on her hands and knees while he rams into her from behind. 

She breaks from the kiss and sits up, scooting back to sit astride his hips. His erection presses up against her and Kimiyo feels like dropping down to take him into her mouth, teasing with her lips and tongue. She tilts her hips instead, grasping the base of his thickened cock and rubbing the sensitive tip of it against her. Kimiyo loves the way he looks beneath her, blue eyes narrowed and bottom lip sucked between his teeth. "You like that?" she asks softly, bracing herself by placing her other hand on his chest.

"I hate it," Arthur says huskily. "Please stop immediately."

Kimiyo laughs and moves to take him inside her, making them both moan. His hands move to her thighs, kneading them as she rides him slowly. They're both shining so brightly it would be impossible for anyone else to look at them, yet her eyes adjust automatically... she can see his muscular body spread beneath her, the jagged and random lines of his scars a shade darker than the rest of his skin, and thinks again of how beautiful he is to her. Everything about him is so different than anything she's ever experienced, especially compared to her ex-husband. Arthur grips her waist to help her move up and down on him, and she allows it for a little while before pushing his hands down to the bedcovers. She wants to watch him lose control, wants to be the one who's pushed him over the edge. There's just something about seeing such a physically imposing man in a moment of total vulnerability, _knowing_ that she's the cause. 

She lifts herself up and off, leaning forward for another deep kiss. "God, you drive me crazy," he rasps.

"Good." Kimiyo slowly lowers herself back down on his cock, feeling the hard length of it sliding deep inside her. Now it's her turn to bite her lip because it's just too, too good. She's never thought sex could be this good, even _without_ their similar metagenes causing the usual havoc - the peculiar reaction of their light powers isn't one that's been especially reliable, but it's becoming a great deal more common. Maybe the heightened pleasure of it is the source of this... _craving_...for him. Surely it's not such a terrible thing, wanting to be with the one you love.

Motes of light disengage from his body and gravitate towards hers, as if they are moths and she the bright flame of their destruction. Arthur's knuckles whiten as he grasps the sheets in a hopeless effort to maintain the control that is swiftly slipping away with each movement of her hips. "Fuck, I... _fuck_ , fuck me, oh _God_...!" His head tilts back as he swallows convulsively, scrubbing the back of his head against the pillow. The individual motes condense into strands, which then turn to a solid swath of light that holds them together. Their powers intertwine and cycle between them in a continuous circuit; Kimiyo cries out, reaching for his hands and they lace their fingers together tightly. Beneath her, Arthur lifts up as his climax hits hard enough to bow his spine.

Kimiyo feels him stiffen and throb inside her, milking him with a few final thrusts as she reaches her own orgasm. Light explodes from her, triggering a sensory overload that drops her down over his chest because she can no longer hold herself up. He wraps his arms around her so tightly it's hard to breathe and she screams into his neck, feeling him push up into her over and over. Without warning, however, her pleasure transmutes to the same overwhelming feeling she's been trying to suppress and Kimiyo finds herself in tears. The sound of her sobs eventually cuts its way into Arthur's sex-addled consciousness and when it does, he immediately eases her onto the bed so that he can find out what's wrong. The movement causes another aftershock to shiver through her, and Kimiyo can't help but laugh through the tears she still can't control because her body can't decide which emotion to commit to. He looks down at her with such concern, and she can't remember the last time she's felt this embarrassed. "Hey," Arthur says, as if he's talking to a frightened animal caught in a trap. 

"Don't look at me," she replies, hiding her face behind her hands. "Oh, God. This is _not_ happening. Don't _look_."

She hears him open his mouth to speak, then take a quick breath. "Did I hurt you?"

The question effectively brings her out of hiding to meet his gaze. His blue eyes are wide with worry and unspoken apologies that he's clearly ready to verbalize. "Oh, Arthur. Arthur, _no_ , I..." Kimiyo reaches out to him quickly. "No, you didn't hurt me."

Arthur exhales with relief. "You know that if you ever wanted me to stop, I would."

"Baby, I know." The endearment slips out before she has time to swallow it back, and his gaze sharpens.

"That's new," he says carefully.

Kimiyo claps her hands back over her face. "Fuck."

"We just did," Arthur exclaims. " _Twice_!"

She laughs again, and wipes at her eyes. "This is so embarrassing."

"I know a thing or two about embarrassing, if you'd like to talk about it." Arthur moves her hair away from her face, arranging it so that it's not doubled underneath her neck and she won't have to smooth it out herself. He knows exactly how much she hates having to constantly pull her hair straight over the pillow, never once offering the same irritated advice that Izumi had given her - that she should just cut her hair if she doesn't like it.

"Do you think I should cut my hair?" Kimiyo asks, still trying to decide if she should discuss this with him. 

Arthur props his chin on his fist and gazes down at her. "What I think is that it doesn't matter what I think."

She reaches up to wind her index finger in a thick strand of his beard, curling it. "If it did, though."

He gives her the smile that she so loves. "If it _did_...it would still be your decision. I think you'd look beautiful even if you had no hair at all, but there might be some unfortunate comparisons to Lex Luthor that I'd be bound to bring up now and again," Arthur teases. "If you're really considering it you could just ask Zatanna, or something. Are you really thinking about it?"

"No."

"Then why are we talking about it?"

Kimiyo makes up her mind. "Because you're nothing like Rising Sun."

"Wow, okay." 

She's never really talked about her ex-husband, and he waits patiently for her to get her thoughts together. "I don't know if you've noticed anything...different...lately," she says, then pauses to gauge his reaction. "Because things are different. I feel _different_."

The alarm on his face that had been there earlier makes an abrupt comeback. "Are you dumping me right now? Is that what this is?" he asks suspiciously.

"No, of course not."

"And you're not pregnant."

"I might be," she says, just to see the look on his face. He delivers in spectacular fashion and Kimiyo puts her hand over his mouth, laughing. "No, I'm not. Now stop interrupting or I'll make you go home." Arthur swears he'll behave, and she goes back to running her fingers through his goatee. "I'm supposed to be a mother before all else, you know. It's something like the Hippocratic Oath that I took in med school, except it extends to always being available in the middle of the night if someone's sick and has an added clause for helping with homework. I love my children with all that I have, and for years they really _were_ all that I had. I've never minded that."

Arthur rearranges himself so that his head is pillowed on his forearm, and Kimiyo moves her pillow a little closer. She places the flat of her palm against his chest, feeling his heartbeat before moving her hand to trace along his collarbone. "Then _you_ happened." She looks up from her scrutiny of the scar tissue curling over his left shoulder. "We weren't supposed to fall in love with each other. I thought...somehow, I thought this would never lead to anything. Just harmless fun, and we would go our separate ways after a while. Do you remember the night when we said 'I love you' out loud to each other? The morning after, I'd never felt so terrified because that meant it was real."

"Was it really so bad?" he asks.

"It's...I...oh, it's hard to explain and I don't think I'm doing this right," Kimiyo says in frustration. "Part of me feels like I really _should_ say goodbye to you because I have a responsibility to my children, but the rest of me... and don't laugh at me, please don't laugh... the rest of me just wants to drag you into bed and keep you there for the rest of your life so you'll never leave me."

He pushes himself back up onto an elbow, startled. "Is that something you're worried about? That I'll leave you?"

"It's not funny," she says, feeling the tears start to well in her eyes yet again. "Don't _joke_ about it, you turn everything into a joke-"

"I'm not laughing. Kimiyo, why did you get a divorce?"

"You said you'd never ask me that," she warns. A tear spills down her cheek, and Arthur leans over to touch his lips to it.

"I'm asking you now." Kimiyo presses her lips together and shakes her head. "Miko. You can tell me anything," he says gently, trying to coax her back into his arms.

She rolls away to sit on the edge of the bed, toeing the carpet and staring down at her knees. It's only right that he know, especially since it's something that relates directly to what she's been trying to tell him, but she's spent years trying to pretend that it never happened to begin with. "It's...it's so humiliating," Kimiyo says, rubbing her eyes again. "Not even Kara knows the truth." Arthur touches her back lightly and, when she doesn't move away from him, moves over behind her. She leans back against his warm chest and tells a story that she wishes had happened to someone else -how there had been nothing spectacular between her and Izumi, but they were compatible and seemed to fit well together. How they'd carefully planned the businesslike conception of each child but as Kimiyo's calm affection for her husband grew into love, Izumi's initial regard for her had swiftly declined into mere tolerance. How his absences, excused as work duties, grew until it wasn't at all unusual for Izumi to stay away for days at a time... and how she'd finally discovered that her beloved husband wasn't coming home because he'd started another family with a woman he'd fallen in love with during some conference. "You've already noticed that he doesn't give a damn about visitation," she says. "I can't even hate her for it - Izumi apparently forgot to mention that he was already married. When I found out, she was almost nine months pregnant with their child."

"Jesus," Arthur says, sounding shocked. He doesn't ask her if the woman is still with Izumi, the question anyone else would ask. Instead, he tucks her head beneath his chin and holds her.

"I swore I'd never let myself love anyone else like that," Kimiyo tells him, the words muffled against his throat. "But like I said... _you_ happened and it's even worse than with Izumi, and lately all I can think about is the cycle repeating itself. If it happened again, I don't think I'd be able to stand it." She's sobbing again, but this time there's a feeling of relief mixed in with the grief and shame of her failed marriage. Arthur cradles her against him while he strokes her hair with reassuring murmurs of how much he loves her, yet the _truly_ reassuring thing is the light spilling from his pores. As she purges herself of the sorrow she’s carried for so long, mourning a love that was discarded and betrayed in such a flagrant manner, Kimiyo feels peace begin to replace the ache in her heart. Her tears run dry and though her head hurts and she’s in desperate need of a box of tissues, Arthur’s embrace is still where she needs to be; after all this time, pure uncontrolled emotion will still kickstart his metagene. His glow enfolds her, silent and tangible proof of his love. She wants to stay there forever.

“I’ll never leave you,” Arthur says.

Kimiyo wants to tell him not to make a pledge he can’t keep, but all she wants to do is hear him say it again. “Promise me.”

He separates from her just enough for him to slide two fingers beneath her chin, tilting her head to make her look at him. “I promise.”

They decide upon taking a bath together after Kimiyo laments that she’s a mess and needs to clean up, and he makes her laugh by lathering her hair and giving her a shampoo mohawk. Her headache has disappeared completely by the time they’ve toweled each other off and she’s still not feeling like sending him home yet, so they make love again even though Arthur swears she’s trying to kill him. “Maybe you could just stay over,” Kimiyo suggests as she draws patterns on his stomach.

“ _That_ would go over well with the kids.”

“What are you talking about? Imako’s crazy about you.”

“You have _two_ children,” Arthur reminds her unnecessarily, reaching a hand up to push his hair out of his eyes. She should probably give him another haircut soon.

Kimiyo yawns and sits up to look around for his clothing, which she had all but yanked off of him upon his arrival a few hours earlier. “Yasu’s getting used to you; he’s just at such a difficult age right now… look, I can’t see where your stuff is so you might as well stay.”

“Next you’ll say that it’s too dark in here for you to see,” he says. “If you really want me to stay…”

She flips her hair over her shoulders and arches her back just to watch him shift his hips. “Of course I do. You’re not acting like _you_ want to.”

Arthur sighs and moves her hand away from his inner thigh, dropping a pillow into his lap. “ _Stop_ that; I’ve heard that prolonged sexual exertion is the leading cause of death in men over the age of forty-five. And for the record, I _always_ want to stay – you just keep kicking me out so I don’t bother asking anymore. Didn’t we use to have set days for that during the week, or am I thinking about something else?”

“No, we did,” she says thoughtfully. “I wonder why it – oh, I remember now. We got off schedule when you were in Bialya.”

He snaps his fingers. “Yeah, that’s right… then when I came back, I had to move.”

“God, your old place was awful.”

“It was okay,” he says defensively. “I mean, there was the roach problem but other than that…”

Kimiyo shrieks and covers her ears. “Don’t talk about roaches!”

“Take a moment to think about who we _are_ \- the infestation wasn’t nearly as bad as it could’ve been because they all run for cover whenever there’s light,” Arthur laughs, wrestling her to the mattress playfully. “Maybe I’ll get one for you as a pet, you could call it Junior. You can ask Ray and Buddy to make you some little outfits for it, take it for walks in the park."

She pushes him off onto the floor. "What does Buddy have to do with it? I understand why _Ray_ would be involved."

Arthur stretches a hand up to grasp her ankle. "You'd need someone to tell you about the fashions that are all the rage amongst vermin, now, wouldn't you? Besides, just think of the practical applications - he could translate for you in emergencies: 'What's that, boy? Bruce Wayne fell down Ma Hunkel's old well and can't get out?'"

Kimiyo laughs and pulls her legs up so that her supervillain comes with them. "You and your imagination, I swear... oh! I picked up some pajamas for Yasu last week and wound up with a pair that has mismatched sizes. Someone was either in a hurry in the changing room or simply wanted a larger shirt with that particular set, but I came home with a top that fits him perfectly, and bottoms that are way too big."

"Hoshi, are you actually giving me an adolescent boy's hand-me-downs?" Arthur asks incredulously. 

"I put them in the other nightstand in case you wanted them. We don't need my son and daughter bursting in here and seeing... what does Evan call it? Physician's Assistant Light? Is that what he says?" Kimiyo rubs her hand across her mouth in an effort to keep from laughing. "Just go see if they fit, please."

She manages to contain her amusement until the moment Arthur opens the drawer. "Miko, come _on_ ," he complains. "Spongebob _Squarepants_?" He pulls them on anyway, and throws a pillow at her head when she can't stop laughing. "Hey, want to watch a movie? I know how to get free movies on Pay Per View, if you still have cable."

"I thought that we could just... talk," Kimiyo suggests. “We’re not going to do anything illegal.”

Arthur shrugs. "Fine by me, as long as you keep your hands in sight the entire time. Which reminds me; you’ve dehydrated me and I'm going to get some water. You want some?"

She nods, and he heads to the kitchen while she fixes the bed and pulls on her laciest nightgown. Kimiyo pauses for a moment to listen for the sound of the cabinet opening and the muted clink of glass, then quickly tucks the fitted sheet back around the mattress with a smile on her face. It feels good to have finally told him about her divorce and while facing her fear of being abandoned was one of the hardest things she's done in years, it feels like a massive weight has been lifted from her. She's confessed to being terrified of how much she loves Arthur, and is being met with nothing but reassurance and returned love. She feels like she can do anything, and decides to tempt fate one more time as he walks back in the room wearing those ridiculous pajama pants. "This is nice, isn't it? Being together like this."

This question earns her another smile as Arthur passes her a glass of water. "Yes, it is."

"What if it were always like this?" Kimiyo asks.

He drains half of his water and sets it down, cocking his head to one side. "Your mind is all over the place tonight."

"I've been thinking a lot lately."

They both get in bed and lean against the pillows that are propped against the headboard. Arthur takes her hand and plays with her fingers. "So tell me."

"I think we should move in together," Kimiyo says, and he lifts his head to stare at her as if she’s sprouted an eye in the middle of her forehead. She quickly outlines the advantages. “You’re here often enough anyway, and it’s time to stop sneaking around and making up excuses for getting a babysitter. You wouldn’t move in with us _here_ \- we’d find a new place, with room enough for everyone. I’d like to stay in the same school district so that the children wouldn’t have to leave their friends, but… what do you think?” she asks anxiously, wondering if she’s pushed just a little too far.

Arthur studies her, blinking slowly. “Okay.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. C’mere.” Kimiyo scoots over into his arms, smiling and tilting her head back for a kiss. “Hey, does this mean you’re going to be _nicer_ to me from now on?”

“Don’t count on it, Artie.”

He sighs. “Well, it was worth a try. Hey… is there anything else you need to talk about?”

That sounds slightly ominous. “Not unless you know something I don’t.”

Arthur runs his fingers through her hair. “You were pretty upset earlier. If there’s something else you need to add, I’m here to listen.”

“I don’t know if I can keep talking about it, to be honest.”

“Well, he’s set the bar at an all-time low so that I don’t have to do much to surpass him.”

The bar has indeed never been lower, but she doesn’t bother saying this aloud. “You’ve already done that. I mean, except for not being able to get it up again after only _three times_...”

Arthur’s eyebrows nearly climb right off his head. “Only…!” The Spongebob pajamas go flying and she starts giggling wildly as they hit the mattress. “What’s the record, so far?”

Kimiyo ruffles his dark hair so that it sticks up in all different directions. “Five.”

“It’s about to be seven.”

“Such dedication; I love it,” she purrs, dragging her nails across his back. “But why not try for ten?”

“ _Fine_ , I’ll-” he’s interrupted by the shrill ringing of his cell, and they both groan before Arthur reaches across her to pick it up from the nightstand. 

“Who’s calling you _this_ late?” Kimiyo demands, looking over at the clock that is telling them that it’s 2:30 a.m.

Arthur shrugs and lifts himself in a kneeling position over her. “Noah, maybe? You know how socially awkward the man is… yeah?” he asks as he flips the phone open, guiding her hand between his legs. She rolls her eyes upon seeing what her son would call the ‘Stone Age’ phone – Arthur claims that he gets them because they’re cheap enough, it doesn’t even matter if he accidentally destroys them. Kimiyo thinks that if he were simply more careful, there wouldn’t be a problem. When he suddenly closes his hands around her wrist to stop the handjob in progress, she looks up and watches his eyes narrow. “What, _now_? Why would I- no, you tell _me_. Wha…no, I’m not going. You can tell her to go fuck herself, because I’m not on parole. I have no warrants. I’m _busy_.”

She sits up, mouthing _who is it?_ at him and Arthur shakes his head at her, making a sweeping gesture around his neck. Amanda Waller and Belle Reve, then. He looks irritated enough to make her straighten her nightgown and pull the straps back over her shoulders, because it’s plain that he won’t be in the mood after this. Kimiyo wonders why in the world he’ll be expected to report in – not only because it’s the middle of the night, but also because Arthur is currently having an unprecedented law-abiding streak. She knows this because she’d picked up a children’s rewards chart last month to track his progress and adds a sticker for each day he behaves himself, which he finds absolutely hilarious.

He hangs up with another curse, and Kimiyo snags the phone in mid-air before it can smash into the wall. “Inside voice,” she murmurs before he gets so loud that he wakes the children. “So I guess you’re not staying after all.”

Arthur rakes his hands through his hair while he paces back and forth at the end of the bed. “Waller’s calling me in. Something about all prior Squad members needing to be debriefed, and if I don’t show up voluntarily I’ll be arrested. Can she do that? That doesn’t sound legal.” 

“No, it doesn’t… but that woman could find a loophole in a sheet of _glass_ and make it work for her. You didn’t try to kill her again, did you?”

“No one could ever prove that I tried the _first_ time,” Arthur points out. “I’ve got fifteen minutes to get there, or a warrant gets sent to the nearest station and- oh, you’ve got to be fucking _kidding_ …” he walks over to the window and Kimiyo is startled to see red and blue lights shining through the blinds. She jumps off of the bed and goes to stand beside him as he puts two fingers through the slats so that they can look through, and they both look down at the police cruiser parked in front of the building.

Ice starts forming in her stomach. “How does anyone know you’re here? You’re sure you didn’t do anything.”

“I swear to you, I haven’t.” 

They look at each other, and Kimiyo reaches for his hand. “I don’t want you to go. Something doesn’t feel right about this.”

“I don’t think I have the option of staying. Look, I need to get going.”

“You can be there in five seconds – why do you have to leave now?” Kimiyo asks, tightening her grip on his fingers. When Arthur tells her that he’s been requested to appear in uniform, the fear clawing at her throat nearly robs her of speech. “Can you come back after you’re dressed? Please, Arthur.”

He looks down at her and puts his hands on her shoulders. “It’ll be fine, Miko. C’mon, don’t cry… this isn’t the first time I’ve had police waiting for me, after all.” Arthur gives her a smile that doesn’t reach his eyes. 

“You can leave from here, just… I need to see you one last time.” 

“I think you’re overreacting,” Arthur says gently. “If I have time, I’ll stop by. The roaches might have taken my suit.” He chucks her beneath the chin and kisses her forehead. “Step back so I don’t take you with me.”

She does as requested and he teleports away, naked as the day he was born. While she waits for him to come back, Kimiyo tries to keep busy by searching for his civilian clothing and folds it neatly before placing it in the nightstand on ‘his’ side of her bed. The police cruiser still has its lights on outside, and she pulls on a robe before standing at the window and staring down at it. She can see vague outlines of the officers inside the car and when she mentally locates a nearby streetlamp and forces it to brighten, Kimiyo can see that the figures inside aren’t police at all. The lamp bursts from the pressure she’s exerting but the instant before it does she realizes that the people inside are not only impersonating officers, she’s seen them before. But why would Rick Flag, of all people, be sitting inside a cruiser alongside Floyd Lawton?

Kimiyo steps back, breathing hard and trying to orient herself because she has to warn Arthur somehow. Not that she has any idea of what she’ll say, but surely there’s got to be _something_ she can do. The bright flash of Arthur teleporting in startles her so badly she nearly screams aloud, flinging herself at him. “Whoa, whoa – slow down, Miko,” he says, trying to make sense of her babbling. “Take a deep breath, okay? I can’t stay long-”

“Flag and Deadshot are out there in the car!” she yells at him.

“It figures,” is all the response she gets. “Flag probably requisitioned it from the local substation… he does it all the time.”

“So, you’re telling me that it’s normal.” Kimiyo immediately feels foolish, and angry because of it. “You never mentioned anything like that before,” she snaps.

He raises his palms in surrender. “It’s been a while since you’ve seen me being hauled in, so it’s not exactly something I’d think was important that you know. Take it easy.”

Kimiyo opens her mouth to snarl at him for making light of the situation, but she catches the unintentional pun before she utters it. “I’m telling you, something’s wrong.” Her words still come out harsher than she means them to, and his lips thin in response to her tone. 

“Let’s not fight, okay? Whatever’s going on is fishy, sure, but I’m sure it’ll be fine in the end – you really don’t have anything to worry about,” Arthur says wearily, glancing over his shoulder at the window. “Waller loves to put people off balance like this. Look, I’ve only got a couple more minutes so why don’t we talk about the whole…cohabitation thing…over lunch tomorrow. Well, it’s technically tomorrow _now_ so I’ll stop by your office at one. You bring some listings, and I’ll get in touch with Noah – I think his cousin’s a realtor.”

She gazes up at him and straightens his cape, biting her lip. Knowing that she’s playing right into Amanda Waller’s hands irritates her, but she can live with it if it means that nothing bad happens tonight. This morning. Whatever. “Call me as soon as you’re done, okay?” Kimiyo asks, flattening her palms against the white starburst on his chest. In the spirit of their rather emotional ‘new’ connection, she swallows back some of her pride. “I’m sorry, Artie. I just…I just don’t want to lose you.”

Arthur laughs, and this time the smile she gets in response is the one she loves so much. “I don’t want to lose me, either. In case you haven’t noticed, I’m pretty damned magnificent.”

“I’ve noticed that, actually.” She butts her head against his chest and he folds his arms around her. “Don’t let that go to your head, Doctor Light.”

“Oh, it’s too late for that. Now get up here and give me a kiss, because I’ve got to go,” he prompts.

Kimiyo lifts herself up on a cushion of light to press her lips to his in a lingering kiss, and smiles to see his eyes glow. “Don’t forget, you’ve still got a record to break,” she says, tweaking his goatee. 

“Ten it is,” Arthur says, giving her another kiss before stepping back and drawing his cape around himself. “I’ll call you by seven at the latest, okay? Don’t worry.”

She nods, biting her bottom lip again. “Yeah. Yeah, okay.”

“I love you – don’t _worry_.”

“I love you more, old man.”

“No, you don’t.” He winks at her and teleports in a flare of light bright enough to leave her with his afterimage behind her eyelids. Kimiyo moves back to the window to look down, and the lights turn off after a few more seconds. Floyd opens his door and leans out to look up at her with an expression on his face that makes all her misgivings come flooding back to her, then Rick Flag pulls him back inside the car before driving away.

There’s absolutely no way that she can go to bed, and she’d love to call Kara to discuss the night’s events with her, but even Power Girl needs her sleep. Kimiyo paces around the room before hurrying out to the living room because her cell is in her purse _and what if he called and she couldn’t hear it_ … she retrieves it and rushes back to the bedroom, checking her notifications, but she hasn’t missed anything. Making sure the volume is turned up, she decides that it’s time she washed her bedsheets. Kimiyo gets dressed and sticks her phone in the back pocket of her jeans, and gives the living room a good cleaning while she waits for the washer to finish its cycle. That doesn’t take any time at all, so she gathers up all the trash and checks on the kids. Finalizing the grocery list, organizing the pantry, and setting the table for breakfast only kills a small bit of time so it’s back to pacing around her bedroom.

Seven o’clock comes and goes, and the phone stays silent. The kids come out of their rooms and she gets them ready for school, plastering a smile on her face that they don’t question this early in the morning. Kimiyo has already resigned herself to turning off the ringer and taking a nap because she’s exhausted, so she calls Ted around nine to let him know that she’ll be in after lunch. 

_”Kim? Are you okay? I just heard,_ ” her friend says cautiously.

What? “Heard what, exactly?” she asks sharply, all thoughts of sleep disappearing instantly. “What’s going on?”

“ _Oh, God. Jesus. Um…_ ” Ted clears his throat. “ _You don’t, I mean you haven’t…you haven’t…_ ”

“Haven’t _what?_ ” Kimiyo shrieks.

“ _It’s all over the news. Is Kara there with you? I’m gonna call her and_ -” he’s still talking, but she hangs up on him. Kimiyo’s hands are shaking so badly she can’t even turn the television on, but she manages to hit the power button. The remote slips out of her hands and bounces off the coffee table before hitting the floor, because all she can do is stand and stare at the words stretched across the bottom of the screen. _Supervillains GONE!_ has been typed in a large red font.

“ _-executive order of the President, the largest mass deportation in history was carried out last night,_ ” the anchor says cheerfully, rearranging his notes. “ _Sources say that most of the caped criminals were taken to an undisclosed location where they are expected to live out their natural lives away from the population-_ ” The TV goes black as Kara arrives in a blur and turns it off. Her best friend leads her to the couch and sits her down, and she’s saying something that Kimiyo doesn’t hear. She hadn’t wanted him to go, and he had told her not to worry. He’d told her that he would call her, and they’d go for lunch together, and they would search for an apartment. 

He had promised to never leave her.


End file.
